Third-quarter surge carries Bucks past Magic
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 13 of his team-leading 26 points in the third quarter to lead the Bucks to a 110-103 victory over the Orlando Magic on Wednesday night at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee.
The NBA's second-leading scorer at 28.7 points a game, Antetokounmpo hit 10 of 15 shots and was 6-for-10 from the free throw line. Milwaukee (22-18) shot 55.6 percent from the floor despite a 4-for-19 showing from beyond the 3-point arc.
All five starters scored in double figures for the Bucks, who have won seven of their past 12 games and eight of their past 11 at home.
Orlando (12-30) got 21 points from Evan Fournier and 14 each from Bismack Biyombo and Marreese Speights, but the Magic shot 43.3 percent from the floor.
Eric Bledsoe and Khris Middleton combined for 14 points while the Bucks shot 57 percent (12-for-21) overall in the opening quarter, but Milwaukee missed all six of its 3-point attempts while the Magic went 1-for-5 from long distance. The Bucks emerged with a 31-30 lead.
A stronger effort on the defensive end fueled Milwaukee in the second quarter. The Bucks blocked four shots in the quarter, with point guard Malcolm Brogdon accounting for two of those. Milwaukee took a 53-46 lead into halftime despite making only 2 of 14 3-point attempts.
The Bucks hit seven of their first 10 shots in the third quarter. They stretched their lead to 11 when Bledsoe fed Antetokounmpo for a dunk with 7:16 left in the period, and a Henson hook with 6:10 to go gave Milwaukee a 72-57 advantage.
An 11-0 run broke the game open, and a Brogdon 3-pointer as the shot clock expired with 1:30 left made it a 20-point lead. Antetokounmpo scored 13 in the quarter, sending Milwaukee, which outscored Orlando 28-8 in the paint during the third, into the fourth with an 89-69 lead.
Orlando put together an 11-0 run of its own late in the fourth and trimmed the deficit to eight on Mario Hezonja's 3-pointer with 1:10 to play.
The Magic have lost 26 of 30 games since starting the season 8-4.
--Field Level Media
